Dana White shares his thoughts on Alexa Grasso’s UFC 285 title win, Bo Nickal’s debut win, Darren Till’s release, more.
LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Dana White[/autotag] had a lot to digest on Saturday night.
With [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag]’ successful MMA comeback to win the UFC heavyweight title, to [autotag]Alexa Grasso[/autotag]’s historic win over all-time great [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag], the UFC president had plenty on his mind at Saturday’s UFC 285 post-fight press conference.
Speaking with reporters, White shared his thoughts on many topics including Grasso’s championship win, [autotag]Bo Nickal[/autotag]’s dominant debut, [autotag]Darren Till[/autotag]’s release from the promotion, and much more.
Now a free agent, former UFC fighter Darren Till said he’s game to box Jake Paul.
Now a free agent, [autotag]Darren Till[/autotag] is game to box [autotag]Jake Paul[/autotag].
Till requested his release from the UFC and said it was due to lingering knee injuries that have hindered both his training and recent performances. The popular native of Liverpool, England, intends to make a UFC return, but in the meantime likes the idea of taking part in standup fights.
He’s open to BKFC if the promotion offers “astronomical” numbers, but one fight he thinks would deliver those figures is a boxing match with Paul, who often has targeted ex-UFC fighters.
“Making millions to fight Jake Paul? I’d be a dumb c*nt to say no,” Till told MMA Junkie. “Are we all just hating because they made a lot of money and made us all buy into it? Maybe. So, count me in.”
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Paul is coming off his first career boxing loss, a split decision to Tommy Fury earlier this week in Saudi Arabia. Till wasn’t too impressed with the fight, but praised Paul for his work ethic.
“Sh*t – Tommy definitely won,” Till said. “All this talk of Jake’s not a real boxer – Jake’s been boxing. Jake’s been working really hard, and he’s been dedicating himself. He’s raw. He’s got a lot to learn with movements and balance and stuff like that, but he didn’t seem like he was out of his depth there.
“Everyone’s saying, ‘Tommy should have done him quick,’ and you know what, Tommy’s been boxing since he was 8 – so yeah, he should have. But Jake’s a tough customer. He can take a shot. He can give a shot. He’s very confident, and he’s got a big team around him who are all hyping him.”
Former UFC title challenger Darren Till wants to take some time to heal knee injuries before attempting another run with the promotion.
[autotag]Darren Till[/autotag] is no longer on the UFC roster, but hopes to return in a few years after healing injuries that have hindered his fight preparation.
The former UFC welterweight title challenger recently requested his release from the promotion. It was a move that caught fans by surprise, even considering his three-fight skid. Speaking for the first time since the major news, Till (18-5-1 MMA, 6-5-1 UFC) explained his reasons for asking the promotion to part ways for now, and why UFC chief business officer Hunter Campbell agreed.
“I’ve been suffering for the past two years, and it’s no secret I think now, at this point,” Till told MMA Junkie. “Obviously, I’ve been speaking to Hunter ever since my (Robert) Whittaker fight where I injured my knees. He’s been going crazy at me for like two years. He’s like, ‘Till, I can’t take much more of this.’ He’s like, ‘I’ve got your back, I know you’re going to be a champ.’ Stuff like that he says to me. But he’s like, ‘You need to get your knees right.’ He said this before my last fight, and said it before the fight before that.”
In July 2020, Till’s knee troubles began when he fought former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker in Abu Dhabi. Things got worse in preparation for his next fight a year later against Derek Brunson, but he didn’t stop going.
“I’ve got a torn ACL in my right knee,” Till said. “Whittaker fight, I tore my MCL. Eight weeks before I fought Derek Brunson, I tore my ACL in the same knee, and the other one is a torn MCL. So, the other one’s not that bad, but the right one, a torn ACL, you don’t get no worse. Every grade is tore.
“I’ve been trying to convince myself I’m okay when I’m not, so I need to go off and do some rigorous f*cking stuff with my body, and obviously, the mental side comes into it a little bit.”
Till admits he shouldn’t have fought Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 282 in his condition, and has yet to get surgery for the injuries. He tried stem cell treatments, but they did not do the trick. All the while, he didn’t train for a key part of MMA fights: grappling.
“I went in there probably 80 percent prepared again, and obviously took a loss that I don’t feel like I should have took,” Till said.
According to Till, the conversations with Campbell were good, but the UFC exec wanted to make sure this was the direction he wanted to go, considering the promotion typically doesn’t bring fighters back for another stint.
“Maybe I want to leave the UFC for like two years, and just maybe venture out, and obviously look out for my health for two years, and come back and stuff like that,” Till said. “I had a good conversation with him. … I’m thinking I’ll be back, no matter what you say, I know I will. Like, we’ve got a good relationship. It’s not like you kicked me out the UFC, I’m asking to be released, and you’re releasing me.”
About a week later, Till said he made the call to Campbell to ask for his release papers to be sent. A couple of weeks later, everything was completed, which triggered the algorithm-based social media account to alert the public of Till’s removal from the UFC roster.
“No hard feelings with them, I’m sure they’ve got none with me,” Till said. “They know the type of guy I am. I’ve got morals, values, and respect.”
Now, he wants to address the issues properly, but isn’t against taking a striking-only fight before he looks to return to the promotion that granted his release.
“I’ve been getting some crazy big offers the past two days now,” Till said. “It’s not like I’ve left the UFC to go jump into another organization like, ‘Oh, yeah, my knees are fine.’ We’ll see. … I’m sure there’s a few striking matches to do while I’m getting ready to come back to the UFC, make a bit of money. That’s always nice, isn’t it?”
Robert Whittaker doesn’t think Darren Till’s UFC release was due to his recent skid.
[autotag]Robert Whittaker[/autotag] doesn’t think [autotag]Darren Till[/autotag]’s UFC release was due to his recent skid.
The news of Till’s (18-5 MMA, 6-5-1 UFC) departure took many by surprise, but the Liverpool native revealed he’s the one who requested his release.
Whittaker (24-6 MMA, 15-4 UFC), who holds a win over Till, reacted to the news. He said even though Till has lost five of his past six, he had good moments in those fights and remains a big name.
“It’s surprising, to be honest,” Whittaker told FOX Sports Australia. “I would have to believe that it’s not purely because of his last few losses. I think there’s something more to it as in he’s going through something mentally or injuries or something like that. I think there’s discussions between them and they came to the agreement that they were going to release him.
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“I can’t see them just cutting him due to performance. Granted, he’s lost five of his last six, but he looks good when he looks good. He’s still a big name, especially in that U.K. market. He’s a big name. People love the way he holds himself. He’s a funny dude, quite charismatic. Yeah, I can’t seem them doing that because of (his losses).”
Till’s setbacks came to the likes of Tyron Woodley, Jorge Masvidal, Derek Brunson and Whittaker. Till dropped Whittaker early in their UFC on ESPN 14 fight before the former champion rallied to outpoint him. In his most recent octagon appearance, Till was submitted by Dricus Du Plessis in a Fight of the Night effort this past December at UFC 282.
Darren Till’s departure from the UFC was his choice.
[autotag]Darren Till[/autotag]’s departure from the UFC apparently was his choice.
Speculation arose when algorithm-based Twitter account UFC Roster Watch tweeted Tuesday evening that Till’s name has been removed from the UFC database. However, according to Till, he requested his release from the UFC.
“What’s happening everyone, Me, Dana & Hunter are still cool as f*ck,” Till wrote, referencing UFC executives Dana White and Hunter Campbell. “I asked UFC 2 remove me just 2 sort some other sh*t for the foreseeable, They happily agreed to release me out of contract which I appreciate. I’m not going anywhere, got big plans to execute & I’ll be back. ”
What’s happening everyone, Me, Dana & Hunter are still cool as fuck. I asked UFC 2 remove me just 2 sort some other shit for the foreseeable, They happily agreed to release me out of contract which I appreciate. I’m not going anywhere, got big plans to execute & I’ll be back. 🦍
Till, who unsuccessfully challenged for the UFC welterweight title in September 2018, has lost five of his past six fights. He was seeking new life at middleweight but was unable to emerge as a contender after going 1-3 in the division.
After edging out Kelvin Gastelum in his middleweight debut, Till dropped his past three fights in a row, most recently a third-round submission loss to Dricus Du Plessis this past December at UFC 282, which earned both men Fight of the Night.
UFC standout Khamzat Chimaev thinks Darren Till should have spent his most recent training camp with him in Sweden instead of in Thailand.
[autotag]Khamzat Chimaev[/autotag] thinks [autotag]Darren Till[/autotag] should have spent his most recent training camp with him.
Till (18-5-1 MMA, 6-5-1 UFC) was submitted by Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 282 in December. It was his fifth loss in six fights. It’s been a rough stretch for the former welterweight title challenger, who trained at Tiger Muay Thai in Phuket, Thailand, for his fight against Du Plessis.
But Chimaev (12-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) is confident that he would have been able to help Till out had they trained together in Sweden – especially that he was stopped on the ground.
“For his last fight, he trained here at Tiger,” Chimaev said in an interview with Red Corner MMA. “I don’t know who he trained with. Yes, we are close friends with Darren, but he has his own coaches. He is a grown man. He knows what to do. If he’d trained with me in Sweden, it would’ve been a different fight for sure. This is my opinion, at least.”
Till has been plagued with injuries in recent years, but Chimaev says there are even more that he’s yet to address. “Borz” has since reunited with Till in Thailand.
“Darren has a lot of problems nobody knows about,” Chimaev added. “He needs to take care of them. He needs to fix his knee. He needs a knee surgery, but he takes fights instead. I said to him, ‘Hey, do the surgery first, then fight.’ We will see. He knows what to do. I have been helping him in every way I could and I will keep doing so.”
It’s been a rough go for once-promising UFC title challenger Darren Till ever since 2019.
Since 2019, [autotag]Leon Edwards[/autotag] and [autotag]Darren Till[/autotag] have been on quite the opposite career trajectories.
Both top-tier British fighters, Edwards (20-3 MMA, 12-2 UFC) and Till competed on the same card in London in 2019, where Till headlined against Jorge Masvidal and Edwards co-headlined against Gunnar Nelson. Till (18-5 MMA, 6-5-1 UFC) was a fan favorite, whereas Edwards wasn’t too well received by his own home crowd. The pair even went at each other in the pre-fight press conference.
Fast forward four years later, and Edwards is UFC welterweight champion. Till? He’s lost four of his past five.
Both men have since reconciled their differences, and Edwards had nothing but words of encouragement for Till amidst his current skid.
“For me, I just want to see Darren do well, you know?,” Edwards said at a UFC 286 pre-fight press conference. “I feel like he’s a little bit lost as far as like what he’s doing and where he’s training. One day he’s in Thailand, one day he’s with Khamzat. But, yeah, for me, I just want him to somehow find his path, wherever it is.
“Either it’s back in Liverpool where he started or wherever he ends up and just get the confidence back in yourself that you had in 2019 where he thought he was the best in the world and just bring that back into his next fight. I wish him well.”
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Edwards will headline his first U.K. show when he defends his title against Kamaru Usman in a trilogy bout, which headlines UFC 286 on March 18 at The O2 in London.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 286.
With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best fights from December 2022.
With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best fights from December 2022: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie’s Fight of the Month award for December.
At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting on your choice.
Check out these highly anticipated matchups in 2022 that fell through due to various issues outside of the cage.
Fight bookings throughout 2022 were not ravaged by COVID-19 like the year before, but a number of key matchups still never made it to the cage.
Unfortunate injuries occurred in training camp, and in two instances, after weigh-ins, leading to last-minute scheduling changes and late bout scratches.
From entertaining veteran matchups to top contender bouts and title fight rematches, MMA lost some incredible fights this year due to various reasons.
Take a look below at some of the biggest pairings and why they did not go ahead as planned (in order of scheduled date).
Darren Till probably won’t like what Anthony Smith has to say about the direction he should take to get his UFC career on track.
[autotag]Anthony Smith[/autotag] doesn’t think [autotag]Darren Till[/autotag] should face ranked opposition in his next bout.
Till was submitted by Dricus Du Plessis in Round 3 this past Saturday at UFC 282 and is now 1-5 in his past six fights. Although Du Plessis can be viewed as a step down from the likes of former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker and top contender Derek Brunson, the South African finisher is unbeaten in the octagon.
Smith didn’t specify whom he’d like to see Till (18-5-1 MMA, 6-5-1 UFC) fight next, but he doesn’t think it should come against elite-level competition.
“He’s got to, and he’s not gonna want to, but he’s gonna have to back way up, and he’s gonna have to give someone way down in the rankings an opportunity,” Smith said on Michael Bisping’s “Believe You Me” podcast. “Which he doesn’t want to do. He doesn’t want to do that because he wants to continue to climb, he wants to swing for the fences and get his spot back and look ahead.
“But I think the best case scenario for him is to drop way down and give one of these up-and-comers, these young guys, these unknowns, give them an opportunity to face a big-name guy that holds a decent spot in the rankings and hope that you can use that step down in competition as an opportunity to get your mojo back. The flip side of that is you drop one to one of those guys, you’ve got a big f*cking problem.”
Till did appear discouraged when he released a statement post fight but vowed he was not done with the sport. UFC president Dana White doesn’t think Till’s stock dropped after his Fight of the Night effort against Du Plessis, but the 29-year-old plans on taking some time off to recalibrate.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 282.
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